US pre-open: Futures mostly higher as Fed remains dovish
Wall Street futures were mostly higher ahead of the bell on Thursday after the S&P 500 hit another record close in the previous session.
As of 1245 BST, Dow Jones futures were up 0.01%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures were up 0.36% and 0.89%, respectively.
The Dow Jones closed 16.02 points higher on Wednesday as investors digested minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee's latest meeting.
The FOMC meeting minutes, which outlined plans to maintain the pace of asset purchases for some time as the central bank helps to support stable prices and maximum employment, continued to underline sentiment ahead of the bell on Thursday, as was President Joe Biden's $2.0trn infrastructure plan that includes a corporate tax rate hike to 28%.
Biden, who indicated on Wednesday that he was willing to negotiate on the proposed increase, views the hike as a key source of revenue for the White House's infrastructure plan. However, Republicans, claim to be concerned about tax increases as the US begins to emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic.
SpreadEx's Connor Campbell said: "A dovish set of meeting minutes from the Federal Reserve has further reassured investors that Jay Powell and the gang won’t be turning off the stimulus taps any time soon.
"Despite the Fed's dovishness, it is looking like another quiet one from the Dow Jones. The 0.1% increase forecast by the futures still leaves the Dow short of 33,500, the index unable to return to its all-time highs since Europe returned from its Easter break."
On the macro front, this week's jobless claims report will be published at 1430 BST, while Fed chairman Jerome Powell will deliver a speech at 1800 BST. Economists expect to see first-time claims total 694,000 for the week ended 3 April.